Franchise buyers found plenty to spark their interest at the Sydney expo as business ideas from coffee to couriers and pools to photography were on show.
Sydney expo brands
One hundred exhibitors participated, among them a number of brand new concepts and some very familiar names.
On the food front well-known brands included Subway, Mrs Fields Bakery Cafe, Zarraffa’s Coffee, Shingle Inn Cafe and BaskinRobbins.
They were joined by other food retailers including newcomer TexMex chain Frank and Beanz, with its burrito and burgers fast food concept.
Lava Coffee was showcasing its shipping container business model.
Okami, a Melbourne-based Japanese restaurant chain of 15 stores, is now expanding interstate.
Walkers Doughnuts, which recently expanded into New South Wales from Victoria, was also showcasing its business model.
Find a service franchise
Non-retail businesses are increasingly popular for franchise buyers. The Sydney expo had a host of brands for visitors to compare.
Some, like Gutter-Vac, Fastway Couriers, Flatpack Assembly Services, Appliance Tagging Services and Jim’s Window Tinting are mobile operations.
Some offer a mix of business opportunities –Poolwerx and Swimart for instance having both mobile and retail models.
Others offer financial and business services – Aussie, Pack & Send, Minuteman, Snap Franchising, Signarama, The Alternative Board.
On the fitness front first-time exhibitor Zadi Training was showcasing its female gym studio model.
Children’s franchises
There were options for people wanting to work in the children’s market.
The Happy Pics business which has been trading for a couple of years unveiled its childcare photography franchise model at the expo.
Making Rainbows was expanding its business opportunities at the Sydney expo. The business offers music, movement and sensory play sessions for children from babies to five years old.
For more active kids of all ages, Supatramp Adventure Centre combines a range of physical activities such as climbing, trampolining, playground, high ropes.
Learning about franchising
Prospective franchisees turned up to the first dedicated franchise expo for 2019 to discover the opportunities available but also to learn out more about buying a business.
Expo director Tim Collett told Inside Franchise Business “Naturally everyone was a bit nervous after the tumultuous last week in the franchising world but the response from exhibitors and visitors was almost universally positive.
“Franchising remains the best way to get everyday Australians into their own business.
“The brands are telling us that visitors were interested and asking all the right questions.”
Franchise buyers could also sit in on free seminars to pick up insights into franchising, find out some of the pitfalls, be inspired by and learn about the reality of being a business owner from current franchisees.
And keynote speaker Andrew Morello, first winner of The Apprentice, and now at Yellow Brick Road, drew an enthusiastic and engaged crowd to hear about the benefits of franchising.
The next Franchising & Business Opportunities Expo is in Brisbane in June.